SIGNS

Hello All,

I have been out this morning getting signs out and met with the Mayor. I should have word no later  than tomorrow on a Town Hall meeting. Please go by the cleaners and pick up signs that you need or email me what you need and where and I will get them to you. The push is on keep writing letters and spreading the word get them out to vote.

Thanks,
Doug

Proposed policy changes for AP, Honors and Dual Enrollment classes.  
Another example of why we need control of our own schools!

Dear (Insert name of Board of Education Member) ,

I’m writing to urge you NOT to approve the policy regarding Advanced High School Courses .  Implementing this policy at this point is detrimental to currently enrolled high school students.

Instruction Policies2  for June 2013 BWS-Bd Mtg.pdf (http://eagenda.mcsk12.net/Agendas/eagenda/Shelby%20County%20Board%20of%20Education%20Board%20Work%20Session%20-%20June%2018,%202013%20on%20Tuesday,%20June%2018,%202013/ABCBDFA0-0EDF-4063-BB05-681E4D10265DAgenda.htm)

This policy changes grade calculations for AP, Honors and Dual Enrollment classes.   Making this change at this point in the year seems inappropriate and ill-advised because high school students are already locked into class selections for next year.  My son, a Junior at Collierville High School, carefully weighed the advantages and disadvantages of A.P., Dual Enrollment, and Honors classes.  The new grading scale changes the class selection dynamic.  Eliminating the 5 or 3 points added to the semester grade will also change the way grades are reported on a transcript.  Given that many college scholarships are awarded based on GPA, this change could negatively impact scholarship opportunities.

There is no “grandfathering” listed for this policy change; therefore students in the classes of 2014, 2015, and 2016 will have transcripts with a mixed grading scale.  Changing the grading structure during a student’s high school career can negatively impact the college application process.  Every high school transcript produced for the next 3 years will need an explanation of the multiple grading scales used and require additional resources from our depleted guidance staff.  College admissions officers will need to be educated about the change and many colleges will struggle to create a process to “normalize” or “equalize” every grade for every class for every year.  This difficulty will be exacerbated by the lateness of this policy change.

Major changes such as this can be best applied to an incoming freshman class so that students have the same grading scale for all 4 years of high school.

At a time when we are trying to encourage students to take higher level courses to prepare them for college, this grading change “mid career” is discouraging.  This change occurring when students are unable to consult with guidance counselors and teachers is unfair. 

I urge you remove the Advanced High School Courses policy change for further review to be implemented beginning with the 2014-15 school year and BEFORE students make their course selections for 2014-15.  I also recommend further review concerning grandfathering in students who have already matriculated into high school.

P.A.M.S. members getting word out to vote YES for Millington Schools

Thomas Sellers / June 13, 2013 

By Thomas Sellers Jr.

It appeared the mission of People for the Advancement of Millington Schools was done when U.S. District Judge Samuel ‘Hardy’ Mays issued a ruling stopping Shelby County’s suburban municipalities from proceeding.
But members of P.A.M.S. knew the battle wasn’t over and now the group is visible once again all over Millington getting the word out about the upcoming vote on the school referendum. P.A.M.S. is encouraging the residents of Millington to vote YES on June 29 and July 16.
“Phase two is necessary because of the decision that was made by the judge basically to make null and void the vote that took place last summer,” P.A.M.S. member Barbara Halliburton said. “Essentially we’re not starting from scratch. We’ve made a lot of headway with letting people know why the issue was so important last summer.
“Having to get the votes done again, so P.A.M.S. is so very needed to people so that the issue is not put to rest,” she added. “First that there is still a need and two, to know that there is a vote. A lot of people don’t realize they need to vote again.”
There will be one day of early voting at the June 29 at the Baker Community Center. And July 16 is Election Day. Halliburton, an executive assistant, joined P.A.M.S. nearly half a year ago. Her and husband Benjamin have two children heading to the first and fourth grade.
“It’s very important to me that they have as solid of an educational foundation as they can have,” Halliburton said. “And I believe the school system being joined together, the Unified School System, is too large to be effective. I believe Millington will lose it’s voice and not be able to have any impact as far as our children are concerned.”
The Halliburtons have been active in their children’s education from day one. With the issue of Unified School vs. Municipal School, Barbara started to do research and attend P.A.M.S. meetings last year.
She said the political wrangling and lack of planning geared toward Millington forced her to get involved for her children and other Millington youth’s futures.
“It’s important to us and me personally because I’m very involved in my children’s education,” Halliburton said. “People know me up a Lucy Elementary. They know my husband. It’s important to us to be involved.
“My concern is for all the kids, if there is going to be a unified system, there’s no holding back of funds in certain area because what you think their future intentions are,” she continued. “That really bothered me. I thought I really need to get involved in this.”
For months, two of the most visible faces of P.A.M.S. has been Doug Dakin and Bobby Percer. Since the group’s creation, all the members have been out handing out information, conducting meetings and using social media to promote the benefits of a municipal school system for Millington.
The group of about a dozen members has a diverse makeup. Halliburton said that is an appropriate representative of the Millington population.
“Different people bring different things to the table,” she noted. “Not even just from a racial standpoint. Even from the standpoint of the age diversity, it’s all very important. I have a different concern because I have small children. Somebody else might be retired and they’re concerned about they’re property value. So that’s one area of the diversity.
“It’s also important because of the Millington School System I’m confident we’re going to have will educate a diverse range of children,” Halliburton added. “So we have to reflect that to make sure we’re supporting all the kids. Just so people will know in the city of Millington it’s not a racial issue.”
Halliburton noted her children’s school and Millington Central High School as example of Millington’s diversity.
“For Millington that’s not even a question,” she said. “Millington is a very diverse city. For me personally, I am a black woman, I have no desire for my kids to be educated in Memphis City School system. Now because of the children that go there. It’s because of the way the system has been run. The results are not there.”
Halliburton said if Millington votes for its own school system, the residents will have a voice on the impact of the tax dollars, who is hired to teach and run the schools and more accessibility.
“People should vote yes because one thing it allows us to have control of our tax dollar,” she said. “It allows us to have access to those people who will be using those tax dollars. It allows us to have some input in the type of curriculum and the activities we would going on in the schools.
“The people sitting on the school board could be my next door neighbors,” Halliburton added. “I can walk over and talk to that person without having all the political backlash of being in a bigger system.”
Halliburton said Millington is in a prime position for economic growth with Veterans Parkway and room for business growth along Navy Road and Highway 51 as well. Her fear is if the school system is subpar, current families will move and new resident won’t come to Millington stunting that growth.
“A quality school system is the bedrock of a growing community,” she said. “If there is no quality school system, then that community is not going to survive because people will start taking off, particularly younger families. When younger families pick a community, buy a home, and choose a place to live, they’re going to choose a place because of the school system.
“If that system is poorly run and the money is mismanaged, then people will not move here,” Halliburton concluded. “And the growth will be stymied. The time is now for us to take advantage of this opportunity and have some control over the future for our children and the city of Millington. It can go down really fast, the city, if this opportunity is missed.”
For more information, visit Facebook site: People for the Advancement of Millington Schools or e-mail pams38053@yahoo.com.

P.A.M.S. member Barbara Halliburton stands in front of one of the organization’s signs encouraging residents to vote yes for Millington Schools on June 29 and July 16. The Lucy resident has two school-aged children attending Lucy Elementary.

http://millington-news.com/news/

                       ****** CALL TO ACTION*****

Commissioner Roland will be making (and purchasing - thank you Terry!) a commercial tomorrow morning supporting a Millington school system.

He wants to have supporters in the background so please come out tomorrow! They will be at Millington high school at 10:00 a.m.

Please wear anything Millington AND your button! We will have signs there to hold.

Vote YES for Millington Schools

CAN MILLINGTON AFFORD TO START ITS OWN PUBLIC SCHOOLS?

Yes. Tennessee laws require that taxes collected for schools must “follow the children.” In fact, the feasibility study projects that approximately 94% of the funding needed to operate a municipal school district comparable to our current system would come from county and state funds.  We are already paying these taxes to fund the current school system. The remainder of the budget would be met with the new Millington sales tax voted in during 2012.*

WHY DOES THE REFERENDUM QUESTION MENTION A 15-CENT PROPERTY TAX?

Tennessee law requires municipalities that operate school systems to invest in school operations an amount at least equal to 15 cents on the property tax rate each year. The law doesn’t require the revenue to actually come from property taxes. For Millington, that equates to approximately $240K annually. The recent half-cent sales tax increase is generating approximately $1.2M annually. Therefore, the sales tax currently meets this burden although the wording about property tax must remain on the ballot to satisfy state law requirements.

 

I don’t have kids in school, why should I vote YES?

The quality of local schools strongly affects property values.** All Millington residents have an investment in quality schools. “Of all the local neighborhood amenities that can influence a buyer's decision to purchase a home, proximity to good quality schools is one of the most influential.” –National Association of Realtors

Where and When Can I Vote?

Tuesday, July 16, 2013 Millington Municipal Schools Referendum – Special Election

Early Voting –Saturday, June 29, 2013 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM Saturday

Baker Community Center – 7942 Church Street

Voter Registration Deadline – Monday, June 17, 2013

*Southern Educational Strategies Feasibility Study for Millington, TN
** Do Schools Really Affect Property Values? by Ken Corsini on April 6, 2011  http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2011/04/06/school-districts-real-estate-prices/
Research Schools Before Buying a Home http://activerain.com/blogsview/1940744/research-schools-before-buying-a-home

Meeting

We will have a meeting/work session Tuesday 11 June,6:00 pm at Baker Community Center. Hope to see you there.

***We CAN Afford Our Own Schools!***

From an article in the Business section of the Commercial Appeal, dated Sunday, May 5, 2013 titled:

"Study: Suburb ripe for growth, Millington holds potential" by Thomas Bailey Jr.

Mr. Bailey citing the recent completion of Veterans Parkway, and Millington's abundance of land from an industrial developer's point of view, "makes for a spectacular site."

The attraction to Millington includes the easily accessible major railroad, a five-lane access road, utilities and an 8,000-foot-long airport runway complete with control tower and fire/rescue.

Per a recent Shelby County development study of 18 sites along the Tenn 385/I-269 corridor, Millington ranked No. 1 in Shelby County for growth potential. The "TN-385/I-269 Corridor Economic Development/Environmental Study" considered six factors:

1. Site ownership 
2. development potential 
3. development compatibility/frontage to the outer loop
4. vehicular access 
5. utilities 
6. environmental issues. 

The military airbase comprising 1,900 acres was donated to the city of Millington and includes an airfield and surrounding property.

94% of funding for municipal schools will come from county, state, and federal funds. The remaining balance will be funded by the Millington half-cent sales tax dollars. At the current sales tax base, Millington is already exceeding the estimated $1.2M identified in the SES study. With the inevitable growth expected in Millington, our school system can only get stronger!

WE CAN DO THIS AND WE MUST!!